


Zutara Week 2015

by noirefemmefatale



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Zutara Week 2015, may be more mature themes in later chapters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-07-26
Packaged: 2018-04-10 08:01:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4383755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noirefemmefatale/pseuds/noirefemmefatale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It started at a tea shop and ended with forever. </p><p>My entries for Zutara Week 2015. I hope you enjoy them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Happenstance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 1: Happenstance- a coincidence

Katara took a deep breath through her mouth and let it out from her nose before walking into The Jade Dragon. Somehow after breaking up with Aang—it was the right thing to do—she had found herself with the sudden need to visit Toph. Suki was great, phenomenal even, but there was only so much coddling the young master waterbender could take after the split. She felt guilty, but at the same time she felt free.

            She had tried to bend herself the same way she bent her water over the years to be everything that Aang wanted and deserved. While they had been travelling the world and coming in contact with men who were always so bad for her it had been the easy choice to stick with Aang and convince herself that she loved him. In reality, she did love the boy but not in the way that he craved. After spending such a developmental time in her life with him she had come to see the monk as a brother figure at most no matter how much she reminded herself that she could build a life with him. In the end, she had gave in to her feelings and told Aang. Surprisingly, he had managed to stay calm and out of the Avatar State despite the sea of tears that flowed freely down his face and the cracks that came in his voice when he asked, no begged her to stay with him in the Air Temple just a little bit longer so he could love her just a little bit harder.

            With a jolt that sent her back to the present, Katara looked a saw that Iroh was standing in front of her with his tranquil smile and his arms behind his back. “I figured you might want a table but if you’re content to stand in the doorway for your visit I would happy to have someone serve you here.”

            “I was lost in my thoughts but I would love a table.” She finally looked around and saw people dressed in the colors of all the nations seated at the tables. “If you have any.”

            “I will always have a table for you, Katara. Follow me and I’ll get you started on some sweets.”

            Katara made her way through the shop that was big but not quite big enough for the crowd that Iroh attracted. Finally they reached a table near the back right beside a window that looked out at the busy streets of Ba Sing Se. Before leaving, Iroh handed her a menu that had almost doubled in size since he’d started the shop four years ago. Without having to ask, he brought over her favorite flame fruit tarts and a sample of the acacia and arborvitae cakes that he was trying out. She eyed the unfamiliar cake warily before settling on picking her way through the tart first.

            Just as she had settled on a pot of cherry blossom and gardenia tea, she heard the chair across from her scrap against the floor. Fully prepared to tell whoever it was that she wanted nothing more than to be left alone, she set her fierce blue eyes to ice and placed her menu on the table. The words of banishment died as they traveled up her throat when she saw the Fire Lord lowering himself in the chair.

            Zuko hair was unkempt as if it hadn’t been washed or brushed or days and it fell into his eyes, effectively hiding his identifying scar. When he saw her looking he offered a small smile that barely turned his lips and certainly didn’t reach his eyes. Katara’s expression softened as he reached for the second to last tart on the plate.

            “Long time, no see,” he said after taking what felt like a decade to chew and swallow.

            “I’ve been meaning to visit the Fire Nation,” she confessed, why she felt the need to explain to Zuko was beyond her. Maybe it was his eyes that had never looked so sad before. “Honest. It might have been the next place I went after I’m done here with Toph.”

            Zuko waved a hand dismissively. “It’s fine. Flying around spreading peace and love with the Avatar takes up the time that would have been used visiting old friends.”

            Katara nearly choked as she tried to swallow. “Well, I guess I’ll have all the time to visit old friends now. I should make a list.”

            His mouth opened to reply when the owner of the shop himself came to take their order. There was a certain glint in his eyes as he jotted down the tea. It vanished when he saw his nephew’s slumped figure at the table. The look he shot Katara told her that if she found anything out he’d want to know before she left.

            “You’ll be next on my list. Make sure to tell Mai that I’m coming. I’d hate to surprise her with anything.”

            Somehow, Zuko managed to draw within himself further. “Four years was too long for her to wait for a proposal. I came back from an official military meeting with the Earth King this morning and found her bags packed. I saw her off to a boat to Kyoshi before I came here. Is that why you left Aang? He didn’t pop the question soon enough?”

            “No.” Katara took a deep breath and stared at her hands. “He asked multiple times actually and turned him down. In the end we weren’t right for each other. I knew it for a long time, since we visited the Northern Water Tribe after the war and the fate of the world wasn’t on our shoulders. The pressure was gone and my head was clear. I tried—”

            “—There are some things that you just can’t force,” Zuko finished, “Love is the main one.”  
            “Exactly. It’s not fair to the other person.”

            Zuko snorted and leaned his head back against his chair as a serving girl brought out their tea and cups. “Don’t I wish I had figured out that out before I spent four years convincing the world and Mai that we would be together forever.”

            Katara poured the tea for each of them. “Don’t I wish I had figured that out before I had spent four years trying to convince myself.”

            “What a pair. We had the most public relationships in the world and only kept them up for the world.”

            “Was that such a bad thing? It gave everyone hope that a new world was being born from the ashes of the one they had known before. With everything changing at least one thing stayed the same,” Katara mused and Zuko leaned forward to put his elbows on the wood table.

            “You’re telling me. You know what Katara?”

            Katara sipped her tea, the blend was new yet pleasant and quickly replacing blue rainflower tea as her favorite. “What Zuko?”

            “Being with Mai, and losing her, taught me something. I can’t live trying to be a beacon for people to look up to. I can’t run my nation that way either. Agni knows I’m not perfect and I never will be. I’ll just drive myself crazy trying to be what everyone wants to see.”

            “I like that. That’s a philosophy I can get behind, Zuko.”

            “How long are you staying in Ba Sing Se?”

            “Until Toph kicks me out and gets back to perfecting her metal bending. Why?”

            “I’m for another week, two and a half at most. If you really want to visit the Fire Nation you can ride on my boat with me and we can catch up on what’s been happening in the past four years. You could even suggest an ambassador for your tribe. Yours is the only one that doesn’t have someone. Hell, even the swamp benders sent someone to speak for them.”

            “Sounds like a plan. This feels like a moment that we should mark with a cheers. What should it be to?”

            Zuko showed the first real smile since he’d sat down as he lifted his cup and extended his arm. “To new beginnings.”

            At the back of the shop, near the counter, Iroh watched as the two masters knocked their cups together and drank. A tiny smile lit up his weathered face. He believed in happy coincidences and he placed an even firmed belief in fate. It was too early to tell exactly which one was at work but he would take either way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, Zutara week is finally here and I’ve bucked up the courage to get in on the fun. (I'll return to my other fic 'Ceremonious' once the week is over.) Obviously this is my first installment and I hope you enjoyed it. As of right now I think my contributions will flow together but there will be time hops. One more thing, I threw some symbolism in with the flowers and tea and cake and such but if you’re not well versed on the meaning of the flowers then it may have flown over your head. So I’ll explain here and maybe you’ll see what I tried to do.  
> Acacia- secret love  
> Arborvitae- everlasting friendship  
> Cherry blossom- feminine beauty (in China)  
> Gardenia- secret love (again)  
> Rainflower: blue- love at first sight  
> Do what that information what you may. Thank you so much for reading and leave me a comment if you want. I love reading them. Gear up for day two tomorrow!


	2. Vigil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vigil- a period of keeping awake usually during the time usually spent asleep

Sokka knew it would only be a matter of time before Zuko asked for his help in proposing to Katara. It had been a year and a half since his sister’s two week trip to see Toph in the Earth Kingdom had turned into a three month stay in the Fire Nation. Neither he nor his father had been particularly pleased when the hawk came in for the fourth time announcing that Katara was oh so happy in the warm climate and was pushing back her return date yet another time. So when the nervous and fidgety Fire Lord had travelled all the way to South Pole after one of Katara’s shorter—and supervised—stays to ask Hakoda for her hand in marriage, he hadn’t been surprised.

            The only reason Sokka had agreed to help out was because he was sure that his sister would say no. Not only had Aang proposed twice before she called it quits, a Northern Water Tribe warrior that she had dated between a period of being on the rocks with Aang had dropped to one knee. If those two hadn’t done it for her then he highly doubted that Zuko had a chance.

            So Sokka stood watch just at the edge of the turtle duck pond to make sure that no one save for Iroh and Katara came around. He supposed that to anyone who was familiar with the Fire Nation seeing the soft flickering glow of what had to be hundreds of candles was no big deal. He smirked to himself; his sister would know something was up.

            A yawn escaped his lips as he heard the old man and his baby sister walk up, both in sleep clothes. “What was he even doing out at this time? I should have known something was up when he didn’t come to bed on time but I thought it was just a long meeting. He better hope I can heal him when I’m this exhausted.”

            Blue eyes narrowed to slits as he realized that Katara and Zuko had been sleeping in the same bed during her stays. His father would surely hear about this. Disregarding the instructions he had to leave once he saw that the coast was clear, Sokka clambered up the nearest tree that gave him a clear view of the pond.

            When Katara and Iroh pushed through the thin leaves that hid the pond from the rest of the world, his sister stopped. Her jaw fell open and her hands fluttered to her heart as she looked at the Fire Lord among his element. Sokka watched as Iroh slipped away and hid inside a bush that was much closer to the action. He didn’t have time to find amusement in how Zuko would have an audience in his rejection because at that time the man started talking and moving towards his sister.

            “Katara, we’ve come so far together and as separate people and I’m so proud. Even though the time that we’ve been officially a couple is short, anyone can see how much I love you and possibly that I loved you long before we happened to start talking that day in Ba Sing Se. I want you to see how much I love you and I had this whole speech prepared and it flew out of my head as soon as I saw you walk up. You tend to do that to me. I wish this was coming out better.” He sank down to one knee and Sokka held back a snort; here it came. “Will you do me the immense honor of becoming my wife, the future mother of my children, my lifeline when everything else seems to be going wrong?”

            It wasn’t the best Sokka had ever heard. It was nothing compared to the way he had proposed to Suki. He heard Katara sniff and prepared himself to go down the tree and drag Zuko away.

            “Yes,” she whispered, “Zuko yes. A thousand, millions times yes. Nothing would make me happier than marrying you.”

            Sokka’s jaw fell open as he watched Zuko slide a ring onto his sister’s finger and then replace their mother’s necklace with one that he had carved. When the two fell into a loving embrace and kissed as if they hadn’t just spent two weeks basking in the sickening glow of each other, Sokka shimmed his way down the tree. At the same exact time Iroh emerged and joined in on the hug.

            “Oh Sokka I should have known you helped put this together,” Katara said and hugged her brother, “There’s no way he could done it all without you.”

            He looked down at her shining eyes then at the smile so wide it threatened to split his face in two on Zuko. “I just want to see my baby sister happy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second installment! Let me know if you liked it; Zutara through the eyes of someone else is always super fun. I know said I would update my other fic after the week but yesterday I got a spark and started writing. The next chapter will probably be up tomorrow. The next part of Zutara week has been bouncing around my head for quite some time and may be a bit more mature. Who knows? Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow.


	3. Clandestine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is an M rated chapter so if you don't want to read that, which some don't, I'll see you tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clandestine- kept secret or done secretly

It had been months since he’d seen Katara thanks to some tradition that demanded she spend at least four weeks with her family, talking to the spirits and asking for blessings on the marriage. Even with his fastest ships that he had given her, the trip from the South Pole to the Fire Nation took a little over a month. All he had to hold him over were the letters she had sent during her time way despite the fact that her ship had docked that afternoon. His family, the Sages and her family had carefully kept her away to maintain a feeling of allure the day before the wedding. He was practically tearing his hair out. She was so close yet so far.

            “Pulling your hair is supposed to be my job,” Katara’s voice simpered from the corner of his room.

            Zuko groaned and turned his face into his pillow. His body went rigid when he felt the corner of his bed dip beneath new weight. The fantasies he managed to conjure up in the dead of night had never been so quite so real. When he lifted his torso to look at his fiancée, the waterbender who was literally the woman of his dreams, a large grin spread across his face. Before she could speak, he pulled her tightly to his chest and kissed her like he had been drowning and she was the last source of air in the world. In a way it felt like it.

            “Missed me?” she teased.

            He brought his mouth back to hers but the second kiss was less desperate; he had confirmed that she was there. “More than you know. How did you get in here?”

            “Secret passageways. Sokka had a map back from when we launched an invasion.” Katara kissed him before he had a chance to think about what she’d said. “I’m sure the Sages are checking on me every other hour so we don’t have much time. There’s only so long before an ice sculpture melts on my bed and someone sounds the alarms.”

            Zuko shifted so that her back touched the soft silk sheets. “This is your bed.”

            “That’s what I tried to tell them but they were having none of it.” She lazily put her leg across his waist. “Speaking of ‘having’, I wouldn’t mind a piece of you.”

            His breath caught in his throat but there was no way he was going to turn her down when he’d been dreaming of her in a less than modest position since she’d been gone a week. “What if someone hears us or they come to check on me? You aren’t exactly the quietest.”

            Katara’s dark skin got darker around her cheeks. “If I’m not the quietest then you aren’t either. Besides, we’ll do the fast version and save the longer, more loving stuff for the wedding night tomorrow.”

            He bit his lips to keep from breaking into a sloppy grin at the thought of the wedding. In his mind they were already married and their love went deeper than any ink on paper. Still, there was a certain satisfaction over having the world know that she was officially his and he hers. Against the odds they had found each other and went through so much and yet agreed to spend the rest of their lives together out of mutual love and not some political move. Zuko dipped his head and kissed the fall in Katara’s collarbone, making her sigh breathily. He smirked and nipped the skin on her neck just above where his lips had previously kissed.

            “So,” she said after clearing her throat serval times and still not getting rid of the husky lust that coated her vocal cords. “What do you say?”

            “I say there are tons of pillows if you want something to bite.”

            Katara saw Zuko smirk at her surprised expression as he moved so that he hovered over her. Already her breath was quick and shallow in her chest and he had nothing but stare at her. While she had loved seeing her family, it had been too long away from him. Too long since she’d let herself get lost in his eyes, his touch, in just him in general. Once they were married she’d make they’d never be apart for that long.

            A giggle bubbled to her lips that Zuko kissed away as his hands ran down her frame. Her back arched and another small moan escaped her mouth as he touched her breasts. One stern look from her soon-to-be husband told her that they had to be quite if they didn’t want the Sages to burst through the door at that very moment. She nodded and he raised her nightshirt from where it hit her mid-thigh over her head. When she heard his sharp intake of breath Katara barely managed to hold back a grin.

            He leaned over so that she could clearly feel every plane of his fit body as he whispered in her ear. The breath that tickled her neck made her eyes flutter close and her hands plant themselves on his hips.

            “No bindings?”

            “I wanted to save time.” She had meant to sound as innocent as possible, as if leaving herself exposed under the nightshirt when she wasn’t even wearing the pants that went with it had been a slip.

            “You know that’s my second favorite part.”

            “What’s your first?”

            Katara knew what his favorite part of sex was because he did it with such vigor and left her seeing stars every time. Instead of replying, Zuko sank lower, kissing her body lightly as he went down, leaving lip shaped flames beneath her skin. Finally, when he was at the apex of her thighs, he spread her legs and inhaled deeply. A low sound came from his throat, tearing a whimper from Katara’s own as he exhaled and she felt hotter than she ever had before. She knew what came next and grabbed a pillow to cover her face with if she felt the need.

            Or at least she thought she knew what came next. Zuko seemed to have forgotten that they were on a time limit as he kissed the inside of her thighs, getting ever so close to her core and make her sigh deeply, before blowing a bit of air to cool her off—but having the exact opposite effect—and going back to her thighs. When he finally and unexpectedly pressed his tongue flat against her fold, his lips agonizingly brushing her clit but not adding the needed pressure, she squeaked. Simultaneously, Zuko began to lap at her lazily and reached one long arm up to cover her mouth.

            After a few teasing licks where he laughed into her each time Katara yelped on arched on the bed, Zuko seemed to remember that the night was theirs to command fully and focused his attentions on the bundle of nerves that had been waiting none to patiently. Katara let out her loudest moan yet, causing Zuko to apply all his tricks that he had learned in the moments they always managed to steal. If someone was on their way to break up the soon to be newlyweds he’d be damned if he didn’t get her off first.

            While Katara writhed in pleasure and felt the cresting waves and tingles of pleasure that signaled she was close, Zuko rolled his clit between her lips and added a finger. He curled it within her, as if beckoning her orgasm. Katara’s body obeyed and his tongue stroked her throat the immense feeling as his hand clamped down on her mouth and silently begged her to be quiet. It was a boost to his ego to know he hadn’t lost his ability to make her come undone in the time they’d been apart but he was sure that he wouldn’t make it through the wedding ceremony if someone came to stop them now.

            Once Katara’s body sank heavily onto the bed and he was sure that the final rolls of her orgasm had passed, he moved and supported his weight on his elbows on either side of her head. When his dick brushed the still sensitive skin of her inner thigh, Katara opened her eyes and looked at him in a way that could have made him find release right then and there if he had an ounce less of self-control.

            When their lips met in a kiss that display just how bothered they both were, Katara tasted herself. It was a flavor she had come not to mind because it brought back what had happened just moments ago and made her tingle all over. She saw Zuko’s eyes slide closed when she reached between their bodies to grab him. After one stroke that made his arms wobble, she lined him with her entrance and kissed his Adam’s apple.

            “Still want the fast version?” he rasped.

            “More than ever,” she breathed.

            Zuko replaced her hand with his and put just the tip in. He took the hand that he’d used to put it to her mouth. Katara understood and couldn’t blame him; she’d proved that she couldn’t stay quiet without aid when he’d brought her to the brink and sweetly pushed her before. For good measure, she pressed her thin in as thin of a line as they would go beneath his palm.

            Her moan still echoed through the room when he filled completely in one swift motion. The Fire Lord nor the Southern Water Tribe representative seemed to care about the noise as he repeated his motions again and added his own sounds to the mix. Katara relished in the feeling and arched her back so that her breasts pressed to his bare chest. Zuko removed his hand from her mouth to place it on her hips that were doing their best to meet his quick movements. He helped her along with the rhythm, feeling his own pleasure mounting after so long of going without his waterbender beneath him.

            Molten gold eyes met crystal blue and conveyed that he wouldn’t last much longer. Katara moved her hands from where they had been fisting the sheets to scratch along his back. In that moment, Zuko lost it and let out a long groan that no doubt carried all the way to the Earth Kingdom. Katara clenched around him as he felt himself spasm and increased the speed of his movements. Katara gave in first and bit down his shoulder to muffle his name on her lips. He moved his hands from her hips quick as lightning to tangle them in her hair and empty himself. As he kissed the sweaty forehead of his fiancée he tried to think of a time when he had felt so deeply satisfied and found nothing.

            “Wow,” Katara breathed as he settled onto the sheets beside her.

            Zuko moved Katara so that she didn’t have to lay in the mess that they had made. “There’s probably a whole temple worth of Sages on their way here as we speak.”

            “Just throw the covers over me and they’ll never known. I think I’ll sleep here tonight.”

            “Good thing I’m Fire Lord,” he teased, “I can probably full a strings and make sure your punishment for breaking traditional marriage rules isn’t too harsh.”

            Katara’s eyes fluttered closed and she moved to kiss his jaw. “Aren’t I lucky?”

            Zuko didn’t respond, she was already on her way to sleep, but he couldn’t help but feel that he was the lucky one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed it, this was my first time writing anything like this and I feel like it was beyond cringe worthy so yeah there it is. If you want, hop on over to check out my other fic that will see another update once Zutara week is over (it's also Zutara). Day 4 coming tomorrow and I hope it'll be a different direction that what others are going in. Thanks for reading.


	4. Rue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rue- bitterly regret

Out of all the things Zuko had allowed to happen during his life, this had to be the worst. The boat simply wasn’t fast enough to carry him from Kyoshi Island, where had been seeing about getting some of his guards trained, to the Fire Nation capital. The meeting could have waited. He stupidly let his fear of becoming a father cloud his judgement and ultimately cause him to miss the birth of his first born child.

            “Can’t this damn thing go any faster?” the Fire Lord roared and his crew cowered.

            “We’ll reach the mainland in a few hours, Your Majesty. We can’t push the boat any faster or else we’ll risk damage to the engine and structure.”

            “Risk it.”

            The captain took a minute to gauge whether or not the man was serious before signaling to the crew to push the boat faster. It didn’t matter, when they touched land and Zuko created fire from the outside of his fists to propel him forward rather than waiting for the royal progression, he knew it was too late.

            Servants threw themselves onto the wall to avoid him as he tore through the halls of the palace. When he got to the room that had been refurbished for the sole purpose of Katara giving birth, the guards posted outside exchanged looks before letting him in.

            Katara laid in the middle of a gargantuan bed with a bundle of fabric clutched in her arms. He recognized the furs that Sokka had sent over in case the baby was a boy and nearly fell to his knees. Not only had he missed the birth of his first child; he missed the birth of his first son.

            “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, kissing Katara’s sweaty forehead and hooking on finger at the opening of the furs to see the infant’s face.

            “Just promise you’ll be there for the others.” Katara sighed and helped him move the furs. “As much as I adore Uncle, I’d rather have you there to hold my hand.”

            He didn’t reply as he gazed at eyes that mimicked his against the backdrop of skin that mimicked Katara’s. The next time he found out that his wife was pregnant he didn’t plan on leaving her side for the entire duration, let alone the birth.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was at the doctor's all day and I stupidly didn't write this last night. I rue that (I had to, I really had to.). Here it is, it's the shortest thing I've ever written but I'll make that up to you in the next chapters. As always, thank you so much for reading and see you tomorrow.


	5. Voyage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Voyage- a long journey typically by sea

While trips to the Southern Water Tribe usually reminded Zuko of darker times in his life, he couldn’t exactly say that he hated them. No, when Katara was comfortably tucked under him, giggling in a way that made his flutter and made his stomach knot, it was hard to hate anything. He swooped down yet again, not so eager to cut off her latest giggle, and kissed the tip of her nose. From there his lips travelled to the dip just before her lips, her chin and then her collarbone. The knot in his stomach tightened for an entirely different reason when she let out a sound that was halfway between a wistful sigh and breathy moan. Over the years of their marriage he had come to know many sounds that were unique only to his wife but they never ceased to amaze him.

            “It would just so happen that we have this royal room all to ourselves.” Zuko swept his eyes around the room for emphasis before kissing his wife. “And there’s no chill in the air so I’d say we’re a long way from our destination.”

            Katara propped herself up on her elbow and smirked. “How would you suggest we pass our time, Fire Lord?”

            His fingers lightly trailed up her thigh, hitching the silk of her royal robes up as he went and pulling another delicious sigh from her lips. “I can think of a few ways.”

            “Really? I’m drawing a blank; you’ll have to show me.”

            “That can be arranged.”

            Zuko barely had a chance to let out a breath before the sound of running feet filled the hall outside of their door. Fists pounded in a way that couldn’t have possibly been the guards stationed there to keep everyone short of the children and important messenger hawks out.

            “Mom!” The fists stopped for a split second. “Mommommommommom!”

            “I say we don’t answer and we let him tire himself out,” Zuko whispered.

            Katara kissed him lightly. “How many times has that worked out of the thousands that you’ve suggested?”

            “How many times have we actually tried it?” he countered.

            Katara rolled off the expansive bed and made sure that everything was in the right place before going to the metal door and opening it. Iroh II and Patag, their second son who was only just brushing the ripe age of four, tumbled in. The two immediately righted themselves and shot forward to jump on the bed beside their father. Iroh pulled himself up to his six year-old princely height and fixed his parents with the grave stare that he had inherited no doubt from his father.

            “Mom, I have bad news,” Iroh announced.

            Zuko watched as his wife mimicked their son’s expression as best she could and sat on the bed, with her legs tucked beneath her in a way that would have made their high Fire Nation class faint. “Are we off course?”

            “No but—” He glanced around for dramatic effect. “—Pat is a fire bender.”

            “Why would that be bad news?”

            Iroh grabbed his brother and used his hands to hold the younger boy’s eyes open wide. “His eyes are _blue_ , Dad.”

            Zuko had the impression that he should have instantly understood the child’s logic from that piece of information alone. “I’m not following.”

            The boy let go of his brother to turn to face his father fully and convey the _severity_ of the situation. “Mom has blue eyes, Dad. Mom bends water. You have yellow eyes, Dad. You bend fire. I have yellow eyes and I bend fire. Do you get it?”

            “Oh?”

            “It’s fine, Iroh,” Katara smoothed with a small smile, “This just teaches us not to assume things doesn’t it? Now you can practice with someone other than Daddy while we’re on the ship.”

            “He’s a baby, Mom. Fire bender or not I can’t practice with him.”

            Katara took one of her son’s hands in each of her own and led them out of the room, explaining the importance of bonding during their trip as she went. Zuko laid back with a groan. It was going to be a long trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Expect more kids in the next two chapters. I'm kind of still puzzling over what to do for Integrity since that's kinda broad and vague but I'll figure something out. Patag's name comes from Patagonia, Chile in case any of you were wondering. As always, thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. See you tomorrow!


	6. Integrity and Maelstrom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I missed yesterday because nothing was coming to me so I tried to combine the two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> honesty and a violent storm

“Mom,” Kya trilled in a sing-song voice.      

            Katara looked up from the reports on the newly built university she’d been skimmed and raised an eyebrow at three of her children. “Is everything alright?”

            “Well, we overheard Iroh saying that he was going to get Dad and then challenge us to a spar,” Izumi said, her golden eyes grave.

            “And we thought, ‘that’s not fair, Dad is a MASTER,” Patag hollered. He rose up and placed his arms on his mother’s shoulders for dramatic effect.

            “Then I said, ‘well, guess who else is a master bender.’” Kya, who resembled her aunt Azula more than Katara and Zuko cared to admit, took a moment to let them all wonder what her great idea had been. “I said, ‘Mom is a master bender and I bet she could kick Dad’s butt if we asked her to help’.”

            Her children looked at her with hopeful eyes. “So what do you say Mom?”

            Katara sighed to hide the smile that was quickly growing on her face. “Just let me change into something that’s better for sparing.”

            While the Fire Lady went to the bedroom that connected her office, her children took a moment to congratulate each other on their brilliance. Patag, the oldest of the three at a proud fifteen years old, gave his sisters a grin that he’d perfected after spending a few months with Uncle Sokka. Kya, at twelve, liked to think that it had all been her idea and genius that brought the plan together; they so rarely go to spar as a family with their parents included. Izumi, barely brushing the ripe age of eight, was just happy to be included.

 

 

            “Fire Lord Zuko, Crown Prince Iroh, Princess Juniper and Prince Hanrar have requested an audience.”

            Zuko raised his eyebrow but nodded his head and allowed his children to enter. They bowed only because his advisors were still lingering, now wanting to see what had brought the royal heirs to the throne room moments before the end of the day. He would have been lying to himself if he said that he wasn’t more than mildly curious. Zuko hated lying to himself.

            “Is everything alright children? Is it your mother?” His stomach flopped; Katara had been working so hard on various projects lately and in the back of his mind he thought she might be pregnant again. Looking down at his three out of six children, he really hoped that she wasn’t pregnant again.

            “Yes, it’s Mom,” Juniper said.

            He stared at Izumi’s twin as his mouth went dry and he partially rose. “What’s wrong with her?”

            “She’s planning an attack with Pat, Izzy and Ky!” Hanrar cried, “We have to be ready. We have to prepare ourselves! We have to win!”

            “Children,” he started but they were having none of it.

            “Dad.” The even voice of the seventeen year-old reached him easily. When had his bouncing boy turned into a man that seemed ready to take over the nation should the need arise? “Mom is a master waterbender and she’s been having Izumi train with a sword master. We need you on our side. What do you say?”

            Zuko stroked his beard that was at a nice length if he did say so himself. This news was better than hearing that there was another Hanrar on the way.

 “Alright. No sneak attacks this time, we’ll meet them in the courtyard and show that we’re a united force. Han, do you have your boomerang that Uncle Sokka gave you?” The boy showed off the wooden weapon proudly. “Great. Let’s make a game plan.”

 

 

Katara smiled at her husband from across the courtyard until Patag gave her a stern look. Right, he was the enemy even if he did look so very nice in his sparing gear. After a very pointed clearing of the throat from Kya she moved forward with Patag at her side. She wasn’t the team captain but as the mother she had to be there for the setting of the rules. When Zuko and Iroh came forward, she kept her face diplomatic as he grinned at her.

“Mom, Dad c’mon, be serious,” Iroh chided. “We can replace you Izumi and Hanrar.”

“We’re serious,” Zuko said.

“Agreed. Let’s do this.”

“Alright. Nothing at the face, and no lightning at the torso area. Matter of fact, no lightning unless it’s used as a defense.” Iroh pointedly looked around his mother at Kya. “The non-benders are the only ones who can cross the line but they can only stay on the opposing side for about three minutes; if they stay longer they’re out. If one of the benders gets knocked down for more than three seconds, they’re also out. Let’s keep this fair.” At this he glanced at his parents who always found a way to bend the rules.

“Alright Fire Lord Iroh,” Katara teased. She licked her thumb and wiped a smudge of ash from his cheek.

“ _MOM_!”

Katara merely smiled and went back to her side with Patag. She, Patag and Kya slipped into bending forms and Izumi drew out her wooden broadsword. On the other side of the courtyard the opposing team set up in the same way. With a battle cry from Hanrar, the spar began.

Katara and Juniper drew water from the nearby ponds as Zuko and Patag drew orange flames to their fists. Iroh and Kya matched off with scorching columns of blue fames and Hanrar and Izumi charged. With three fire bending children, Katara had learned to adapt her own style to fit the quick jabs that came with the element she’d fallen in love with nineteen years before. While the children faced off, she focused on Zuko where she was sure she wouldn’t have to hold back. With quick movements of childhood, Juniper took control of the tsunami that came her father’s way and used it to knock Izumi back to her own side. Katara let her proud smile stay for a second before changing her footing and assuring—a little guiltily—that her only water bending child was most certainly going down.

“Kya,” Katara called, “how about we try out the trick we’ve been working on.”

Kya grinned and launched herself to her hands, shooting fire from the soles of her feet at Iroh who took control but didn’t see her get away. Izumi and Patag knew exactly what the trick was, as they’d talked about it prior to rushing into battle, and moved forward to drive the other team back, giving their mother and sister space to work.

Katara raised her arms above her head, thrusting her arms out in quick movements that looked eerily like chi blocking, and drew a swirling mass of water around her. Kya took a deep breath and began to draw lightning. Once she had enough of the raw energy, she shot it into the water that her mother controlled. Katara felt the foreign element crackle within her own and increased her hold. She swept up Kya and propelled them upwards using the maelstrom.

Once the cover was effectively in place (and had erased the line) Izumi and Patag surged forward with their own attacks. Katara used some of the water that wasn’t crackling with electricity to catch Juniper and seal her from the neck down in thick wall of ice. Kya used the cover of the storm to shoot fire at Iroh who couldn’t place a hit thanks to the fact that he couldn’t _see_ her and knocked him down. Zuko, wise now to the attack that had taken down the greater part of his team, sought to draw the lightning from the water and give himself and Hanrar a fighting chance. Seeing this, Katara launched into phase two and sent a wave at him. The lightning only stung briefly but it was enough to stun him onto his back. The only one left was Hanrar and she couldn’t very well shock a four year old.

Katara safely deposited herself and Kya before going to her youngest in mock stealth and sweeping him into her tired arms. She lifted him into the air and blew a raspberry on his stomach. The boy dissolved in giggles and put his hands on either side of her face. Once he was tucked against her hip, under her arm and nearly upside down to show that she was taking the spar seriously, Katara turned to the fallen warriors.

“I think, my team has won,” she gloated.

“You guys crossed the line!” Iroh said.

Kya plopped herself in the wet grass next to her eldest brother and swept her arm out to the courtyard. “What line?”

“You said you would play fair!”

Zuko dusted himself off and took his son from his wife’s hold. “Your mother never plays fair.”

Katara kissed him with the greater part of their children made faces and Iroh fumed while planning a way to get back for the injustice. “So, in a few years, who gets the extra teammate?”

“You’re not,” he grimaced.

She smiled hugely and he felt her excitement leak into him once more; it always did. “I am.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's Zutara Week 2015 folks. I had a ton of fun and realized that I could never been someone who has to post things daily until I get some training in the matter. If you like my writing check out my current Zutara fic, Ceremonious, or wait a bit for an AU multi chapter fic that I'll be publishing which will also be Zutara with some other ships thrown in. Did you like it or was it terrible, I'd love if you let me know. Thanks for reading.


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